The present invention relates generally to a device for transporting large game, such as a slain deer, and, more particularly, to a polymer sheet stored in a quiver that is used to pull the large game animal over the uneven surface of the ground.
Hunters who are fortunate enough to harvest a large game animal, such as a whitetail deer, are typically sufficiently removed from civilization that the removal of the animal from the woods presents a substantial challenge. Conventional devices include a rope, with or without formed handles, that are typically tied or looped around the head of the animal and then used to drag the animal through the woods. A slain large game animal can weigh from one hundred to several hundred pounds and requires a significant effort to drag the animal over the surface of the ground, particularly when the animal must be moved uphill. The frictional forces between the ground and the animal, as well as the interference between objects on the ground, such as large rocks or logs or other irregular ground surface undulations, make dragging a slain large game animal over the ground a difficult task to accomplish.
Devices to facilitate dragging a deer can be found in U.S. Pat. No. 4,431,121, granted to Ernest Bensette on Feb. 14, 1984; in U.S. Pat. No. 5,029,921, granted to Robert Houghton, et al, on Jul. 9, 1991; and in U.S. Pat. No. 5,145,224, granted to Richard Welk on Sep. 8, 1992. In the Bensette patent, the hunter is equipped with a backpack-like device that includes a strap to attach to the deer so that the deer can be towed behind the hunter as he walks through the woods. In this particular apparatus, the deer is partially lifted and then dragged across the ground and any obstructions encountered thereby. A hook with a handle is disclosed in the Houghton patent to engage with the deer and permit a manual dragging of the deer over the surface of the ground. Other than providing an even distribution of the weight of the animal over the surface of the handle due to the positioning of the hook, the Houghton device is simply a tool for attachment to the deer to permit the deer to be dragged in a conventional manner. The improvement disclosed in the Welk patent is simply a handle for attachment of a rope interconnecting the deer and the handle to permit two people to drag the slain large game animal.
Wheeled carts are also within the state of the art, as can be seen in U.S. Pat. No. 5,295,556, issued to Daniel Mullin on Mar. 22, 1994; and in U.S. Pat. No. 6,260,864, issued to Phillip Smith on Jul. 17, 2001. Wheeled carts are particularly adaptable for use on relatively flat and unobstructed ground, but have limited use on typical woodland because of obstacles like rocks and logs that are not conducive to being easily traversed with wheeled implements. In U.S. Pat. No. 5,713,497, issued to Kevin Ponczek on Feb. 3, 1998, a modern version of a pole upon which the slain animal is carried by two people. The pole is manufactured to be broken down to permit carrying through the woods by a sling over the shoulder of the hunter.
Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide an apparatus to facilitate the removal of the carcass of a slain large game animal from the woods, which apparatus can be compactly stored and transported and easily utilized.